How was the universe created?- the Chinese Myths

“There is a beginning. There is not yet a beginning. There is a not yet beginning to be a not yet beginning to be a beginning. There is being. There is nonbeing. There is not yet a beginning to be nonbeing. There is a not yet beginning to be a not yet beginning to be nonbeing. Suddenly there is being and nonbeing. But between this being and nonbeing, I don’t know which is being and which is nonbeing.”

As the paragraph well expresses, we, as intellectual beings, are confused about the beginning—the beginning of us and the world we live in. What was the beginning? How did it get started? Who were our ancestors? How are we different from them? These are a few questions we all ponder, but we do not have effective answers. Then what is the truth? The truth remains undiscovered, yet here are some Chinese myths that can give us some cues. Let’s take a look at how some Chinese myths deal with the central question of how the Universe was created

Creation out of Chaos: From Light and Darkness

At the beginning of the universe, there was chaos. And out of the chaos, a light emerged which gave birth to the sky and the darkness, and the Earth came into existence from the darkness of the chaos. This duality symbolizes the primordial forces of creation. The principles of Yang and Yan define the attributes of the sky and the Earth. The sky which had characteristics of bright, active, and masculine is aligned with the principle of Yang and the Earth was soft, passive, and feminine representing Yin.

These principles represent the cosmic balance of the opposing but complementary forces and their influence on the creation and order of the universe.   The combination of the sky and the Earth, i.e., through the interactions of Yang or Yin, leads to the separation of five fundamental elements: wood, sun, earth, metal, and water, which are crucial in sustaining the natural order and are associated with the various aspects of human life.  Out of that interaction, a man was formed. The man is referred to as the Golden One due to his divine qualities and cosmic wisdom. He attained cosmic wisdom by observing simple processes like day and night, the sun setting in the west and the moon rising in the east.

His observations revealed to him insights into celestial phenomena and cosmic order. The Golden One imparted his wisdom to a man referred to as Huang-Lao. Huang-Lao’s understanding was broadened as he learned about the different celestial processes of the sun, stars, and earth, along with the practical skills required for the existence of human beings on Earth.

“In the middle of the earth grows a huge boulder which reaches up into the sky and there supports a mighty sphere. At the foot of this mountain flows a source which divides itself into ten thousand rivers and streams and all of these waters empty into the eight seas. The world is encircled by eight poles. The great earth, however, lies in the middle of the world sea in which are found four islands. Thus the water flows around all the sides of the great earth as the juicy meat surrounds the seed of fruit, as the white surrounds the yolk of an egg. In this way, everything corresponds to the great in the small and the small in the great. The sun and moon, however, circle the earth in an endless movement and give light to the top and bottom of the earth by their brightness.”

In the interaction with the Golden One, Huang-Lao learns the insights that are within, beyond, and surrounding the Earth. The paragraph suggests various cosmological processes, for instance, there is a mighty force in the center that supports other celestial bodies in the universe, like the Sun and Earth. Due to divine wisdom, Huang-Lao was considered a god. Then, the divine hero P’an Ku comes into the story, structures the world, and systemizes the cosmological process.

Myth of P’an Ku: After the death of the Creator

According to the narrative famous in the third to the sixth century in southern China, P’an Ku was the god or creator who arose out of Chaos. When the chaos transformed from nothing to something, it departed into male and female. And the unity between these distinct separations of Chaos gave birth to P’an Ku. The universe emerged with the creation of P’an Ku. But it only got structured after his death. P’an Ku is believed to be a cosmic being from whose body various elements of the universe were formed. This is well described in the paragraph given below:

 “From his skull was shaped the dome of the sky, and from his flesh was formed the soil of the fields; from his bones came the rocks, from his blood the rivers and seas; from his hair came all vegetation. His breath was the wind; his voice made thunder; his right eye became the moon, his left eye, the sun. From his saliva or sweat came rain. And from the vermin which covered his body came forth mankind.”

Lao Tzu: From the Tao Te Ching

According to this myth, before anything was created, there existed a vast emptiness. This emptiness was undefined, irregular, and nameless, which was later referred to as Tao. The boundaryless emptiness, Tao, is referred as “Wuji” marking the irregularity and absence of distinct characteristics. Tao, the mother of the world, is spontaneous and operates in its own natural format apart from artificial constructs.

The creation of the universe begins with the differentiation of Tao, represented by the interplay between Yang and Yin, according to Lao Tzu. The creation involves the interplay between Yin and Yang, opposing but complementary forces. Their unity and cooperation result in the diversity observed in the universe. The process of creation is not forced but rather spontaneous. This is how the universe was created from the transformation of Tao by the harmonious interplay between Yang and Yin. 

The Huai-Nan Tzu: The Infinite Conceived the finite

 

“The infinite conceived the finite.”

Everything emerged from a single common origin, arising from chaos, which was massive and infinite. Eventually, chaos transformed, leading to the Great Beginning, transitioning to emptiness, and finally forming the universe. However, these elements eventually differentiated into numerous forms. After the creation of the universe, the material forces played their role in giving birth to heaven and the Earth. The heaven was composed first which was made up of easily colliding materials and the earth which was made up of heavy difficult-to-collide materials was formed afterward.

The distinct formation of the earth and the heaven followed the principles of Yang and Yin as in they inherit the characteristics of Yang and Yin. Heaven embodies Yang characteristics, light, and activity, while the Earth resembles the qualities of Yin, including passivity and darkness. Then through the interactions between Yang and Yin, the creation of the Sun(Yang) and the moon(Yin)were formed. These celestial bodies, along with the excess forces, formed planets and stars.

Heaven was composed of the sun, moons, and stars while the Earth got water and soil. The process explicitly gives rise to the principle of the Great Oneness which means all of these creations originated from the same ancestor but have received their distinct features and attributes over time. 

Chao Tun-Yi: The Great Ultimate and Non-Ultimate

According to the philosophy stated by Chao Yun-Yi, believes that the creation is out of both the Great Ultimate and Non-Ultimate(believed by Taiosm and Buddhism). He claims that the Great Ultimate is the Non-Ultimate, as believed in Taoism and Buddhism. Before anything and everything, there is None-Ultimate, which is simply emptiness.  

The creation process begins when the Great Ultimate undergoes movement. The movement leads to the generation of Yang, which is characterized as active, light, and masculine. As the Great Ultimate exceeds its limit for movement, it gives rise to a state of peace. The peace, which is not static like emptiness, leads to the generation of Yin, which is the contrast to Yang. It is soft, passive, and feminine. Once tranquility reaches its limit again, the process of activity, i.e., Yang, begins.

The process is a somewhat cyclic interplay between Yang and Yin. Then, there is unity between these opposing yet contrasting forces, which gives birth to five crucial elements: wood, sun, earth, metal, and water. When the five elements are equally distributed results; in phenomena like four seasons and work to balance and create order in the world. Then Chao Tun-Yi emphasizes the mysterious union of the Non-Ultimate, Yin, Yang, and five elements that lead to the formation and transformation of myriad things. 

Conclusion

Through Chinese philosophies and myths, we convert distinct perspectives about the origination of the universe. This myth gives us many outlooks from a concrete explanation of the creation of the universe. Although all myths possess their unique traits, they all emphasize the creation of the universe to be a spontaneous process that is an outcome of unity in the diversity of various natural elements and phenomena. 

FAQs

How did the separation of the Earth and the sky happen?

At the beginning of the universe, there was chaos. And out of the chaos, a light emerged which gave birth to the sky and the darkness, and the Earth came into existence from the darkness of the chaos. This duality symbolizes the primordial forces of creation. The principles of Yang and Yin define the attributes of the sky and the Earth. The sky, which had characteristics of bright, active, and masculine, is aligned with the principle of Yang, and the Earth was soft, passive, and feminine, representing Yin.